The genre of melodrama is not one that I am too familiar with. But still, Cinema Paradiso from the eyes of an un-seasoned melodrama movie goer is wonderful. I got the hair raising chill feeling from watching this film that brought a tear to my eye. The tone is executed absolutely perfectly, mixing the bitter-sweet emotions of a lost love for going to the cinemas with the joy of young love and excitement. Cinema Paradiso is one of those films that reminds me of why I love cinema so much. Although I cannot say enough good things about this movie, my only criticism is that the pacing in the theatrical cut that we watched, dragged around the end of the second act and the beginning of the third.
When Toto is called back to his home town for the funeral of his best friend/father figure Alfredo, he looks back on his childhood and remembers the Cinema Paradiso movie house where he discovered his love for cinema and bringing people joy through the projector. The majority of the film is spent in Toto’s childhood and his relationship with the projectionist Alfredo who teaches young Toto about the changes in cinema and the dying trade of traditional film making.
I would whole heartedly recommend this film to anyone. However, this is an incredibly emotional film, and I watched it with a group of classmates which isn’t the most ideal group of people to cry in a film with. When I was about to cry, I felt myself holding back the tears because I didn’t want to cry in front of my friends. So I’d recommend watching this with family or a girlfriend, you won’t necessarily enjoy it more, but you will feel more comfortable crying.
REVIEW BY MAX| THE MOVIE SOCIETY
The Movie Society is a co-curricular activity for boys in Years 10-12 at Trinity Grammar School.
